Bill acceptors are widely used in the vending, bottling, gaming, entertainment and transportation industries. The known bill acceptors move a banknote along a predetermined path, past a series of sensors provided in the walls of the path to evaluate the physical properties of the banknote. These sensors produce signals which are processed and compared to a standard to determine whether the banknote should be accepted. Based on the data obtained, the electronic processing arrangement determines the nominal value of the banknote and the validity of the banknote. These devices are designed for use in association with several different denominations of banknotes of a specific currency. Problems can occur over time, in that the specific denominations to be evaluated by the banknote acceptor may no longer be appropriate or there could be a need to change the evaluation process for determining whether a bill is authentic. For example, fraudulent banknotes are specifically designed to try to duplicate authentic notes, and there is a continuous process of introducing fraudulent notes which are more difficult to protect. At the time of the manufacture of the bill acceptor, the bill acceptor may include standards which fully distinguish authentic banknotes from fraudulent banknotes, however, in time and with the introduction of new and superior banknotes, this may not be true.
It would also be desirable to change the currency which the banknote acceptor evaluates. Previously, banknote acceptors have been essentially dedicated to a single currency and are difficult to modify for a different currency.